Overwatch 2 is Making Some Game Modes Faster

24.02.2024 - 01:24 / gamerant.com / Aaron Keller / Eric Law

Overwatch 2 is making some changes to the Push, Flashpoint, Hybrid, and Escort game modes to make them faster-paced. These speed adjustments are being made in response to positive feedback during the recent Quicker Play test Overwatch 2 held as a part of its new Quick Play: Hacked feature.

In January, Overwatch 2 introduced Quick Play: Hacked, a limited-time, recurring event where the casual game mode would experience experimental changes. The inaugural test was called Quicker Play, which reduced respawn times, sped up payloads and push bots, and increased the capture and scoring speed of objectives.

Now, Overwatch 2 has announced it is taking some of these changes and permanently adding them to the core game. In a recent Overwatch 2 Director’s Take blog, game director Aaron Keller revealed it was implementing some of the more well-received speed buffs from Quicker Play. In Push, the bot’s movement speed while pushing the barricade will be increased, and the match length in Quick Play will be reduced to 8 minutes. Competitive Push games will still be 10 minutes for the time being, though Overwatch 2 may change that in the future. Additionally, all players will receive a speed boost when leaving the spawn in Flashpoint, as will defenders during setup in Hybrid and Escort.

Keller also spoke about how it would run future Quick Play: Hacked events. Based on feedback from Quicker Play, Overwatch 2 will be using a separate game card next to Quick Play when testing disruptive twists to the normal flow of the game. Less-disruptive experiments may fully replace Quick Play as Quicker Play did, but Overwatch 2 may test them for shorter periods of time if they still make moderately drastic changes. Even so, the big changes from Overwatch 2 Season 9 prove it isn't afraid to mix things up outside of Quick Play: Hacked.

Some fans wondered why Overwatch 2 didn’t use separate game modes, such as the old Experimental card from the original Overwatch, to test these changes in the first place. According to Keller’s data, only 18% of players tried Experimental mode when it was available, most of whom only queued for a single game. In an effort to ensure it gets the data and feedback it needs without fully disrupting the player experience, Overwatch 2 will be trying to strike the perfect balance for future Quick Play: Hacked playtest periods.

Overwatch 2 is Blizzard's free-to-play team-based first-person shooter. The title features some new heroes like Junker Queen and Sojourn, as well as returning favorites.